Harmony
by Gwaeren
Summary: A drabble-fic about that night on the Yacht, and my headcanon as to what happened after their confrontation. Pre-relationship, but hints to it (bringing the rating up to K , just in case). - Sorry for the mixup between this fic and 'Struggling to Breathe' - I got the files mixed up!


Author's Note/Description: A drabble-fic about that night on the Yacht, and my headcanon as to what happened after their confrontation. Pre-relationship, but hints to it (bringing the rating up to K , just in case).

Disclaimer: I own nothing but plot bunnies.

* * *

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

UGH! With a mewl of frustration, Michiru tossed the blankets of her bed aside, staring out over Tokyo bay from the small balcony she was allowed on the yacht. An overnight cruise. WHY had she agreed to it? And now, of course, she couldn't sleep.

Up she went, throwing on a soft, cream hued cover-up over her silky nightgown, stuffed her feet into tiny but plush slippers and tucked her room key into the only pocket on the cover-up she had. Then out the door she went, hoping a walk would help ease her mind. Most of the ship had gone to bed by this point, and the air was moist and thick as she slipped quietly through the hallways - not caring a lick that she wasn't dressed properly.

As she meandered on the deck near the ballroom, however? She overheard something - a melody, though most of the notes couldn't be heard just yet, muffled by distance and doors. But with every step closer, more of the song could be heard.

It was a piano - that registered first, as notes became more clear. Then parts of the song itself could be discerned, and her steps froze for a moment. She knew the song. Of course she knew it. But this... this was the perfect harmony to it, not the melody. Not what she'd played that night, but the counter to it. The complement.

Which would have been all well and good if it'd been just any old song, any classical piece from any of the great composers.

But the song this person was harmonizing with hadn't been written by any of the greats. It wasn't something someone might know from their studies.

It'd been her own song, written only the week before. Not even released on CD or tape yet!

Her breath caught and she slipped closer, inch by inch, trying her best not to make a noise. She had to know who was playing her song - who knew her and her music so well that they'd effortlessly created their own harmony to it. To a song they'd likely only heard ONCE.

Closer. Closer. Until she managed to open a side door to the hall, hidden from the main room by a slight indent in the walls. She hoped the music might cover up the softest whisper of fabric on the floor as she crept inside and the slight breeze that followed, then very carefully peered around the edge of that hallway's corner. What she saw had her heart in her throat, and pain lancing through it.

Haruka.

At the piano, playing the unwritten alternate to her music without a single hesitation. A song of longing, of loneliness and regret. A song that echoed the emptiness she'd been feeling for so long, yearning for someone to waltz into her life and make that music a duet.

To do exactly what Haruka was doing right now.

As quietly as she could, she sank down to sit in the small alcove, listening to the music and letting it wash over her. Soothing her by, at least temporarily, filling the emptiness she'd felt for so long. This was why she'd followed the blond racer for months. This was why she was so intent on at least getting the other girl to listen to her - not that anything had gone to plan. Still, Haruka was able to compliment her in so many ways, able to challenge her, and bring depth and meaning into her life without even trying.

She hugged her knees to her chest, trying to calm the hammering of her heart, its beat carried by the beautiful tune being coaxed key by key out of the piano.

They could be breathtaking together, couldn't they?

But as the music came to an end and Michiru pushed herself to her feet, once more she felt ice touch her heart.

"I know you're there." That voice, which had been so cold as they'd talked about the Silence, sounded more amused this time around. "Come out?" She could hear footsteps coming near to her, slow and deliberate. She couldn't be caught! What would the blond say to her?

Accusations of stalking, of following her after she'd specifically told the girl not to... anger and disgust on those beautiful features, marring them...

NO. She couldn't let that amused voice turn to something so terrible. She couldn't upset the blond again. So she fled. Hands smacked against the door she'd entered through, and her slippered feet no longer hit the ground so softly, trying not to make noise. She'd been discovered. There was no getting around it. So those feet struck the floor hard as she pushed herself into a run, twisting and turning through the hallways to make sure Haruka would have to pause to figure out which way she'd run, hoping to lose her.

She should have known better than to try to outrun a track and field star. Even if she managed it, there was a good chance something would go wrong in her hurry to escape, and go wrong it did. She pivoted to turn down another hallway and shrieked as the slipper gripped the floor harder than she'd anticipated. Her ankle wrenched under her and she hit the floor - but seconds later she was up and running again - this time without the soft, white thing around her foot. She didn't even have a chance to grab it!

"Kuso..." she yelped at the painful twist, as Haruka's concerned voice called out - her own footsteps coming faster. Louder. The other girl was running, too.

"Are you okay? Stay there! I'll help you!" But Michiru couldn't be caught. Wouldn't be. Off she went, ignoring the twinge in her ankle as she ran - she'd pay for that the next morning, she knew.

And finally, she managed to get to her room, unlocking it and shoving herself inside with a gasp of relief. Hopefully, Haruka wouldn't see which door slammed shut as she entered the hallway. Hopefully, she'd never learn of how Michiru had accidentally stalked her again.

Hopefully, she could forget about the whole thing.

Haruka frowned to herself as she entered the small hallway of bedrooms, just a second after she heard one of the doors slam shut. Her eyes fell to the white slipper she held in her hand, wondering just who it might have been listening to her play that night. They'd stayed for the whole song - who had such an appreciation for music like that? But then, the entire ship had paid to hear Kaioh Michiru play, so perhaps there were a number of fans on the boat.

Feeling awkwardly like the prince in Cinderella, she tucked the slipper into her pocket, frowning to herself as she headed back to her own room. Was the other person so shy they didn't want to be caught? They'd hurt themselves trying to get away from her, after all.

Unless...

Had it been Michiru, herself?

The taller girl shook her head. Surely the poised young woman wouldn't have followed her to the grand ballroom so soon after their rather angry discussion earlier that day, would she?

No, it couldn't be Michiru.

But she screwed up her face at herself - for a second, she'd actually felt a flutter in her chest, a flash of hope in her heart that it might have been her. Why? The girl was nothing but trouble. And some part of her was terrified of what she brought with her.

But what if it had been her?

The blond's brows furrowed at the idea, even as she sat herself down on her bed and began removing her shoes.

Would she have recognized her own song, even if it was only the harmony to it? Would she have liked it? A part of Haruka's heart craved the thought that the petite artist would enjoy it. More than any other girl in her life, Haruka wanted to make _**HER**_ smile. Wanted to bring a rosy blush to _**HER**_ cheeks, and get _**HER**_ flustered. She wanted to know what those lips tasted like, wanted to know how well they could dance together, and their music? She knew they'd compliment each other well.

But that was just it, wasn't it? Those intense feelings of wanting to be with the other girl, wanting to comfort her and hold her, and keep her safe from everything - doing such a thing meant letting herself get tied down, not just to a person, but to a fate she'd rather avoid if at all possible. Michiru meant trouble. And Haruka ran from trouble - she had enough of it in her life without adding more.

She sighed, then looked at the slipper again.

Maybe it had been her?

She sighed, removing her suit and dressing in her pajamas before curling herself under the covers and waiting for sleep.

Maybe it wasn't so bad, if it _was _her.

And perhaps she hoped it had been Michiru.

Not that she'd admit that to anyone.

Sleep took her, and this time her dreams weren't of destruction or the end of the world. Instead? She dreamed of dancing with another - a princess with the sweetest smile, and beautiful aqua hair. She dreamed of a night of romance, of holding the other girl close. Of kisses stolen in the starlight. Neptune.

Her name was Neptune.

And Haruka knew, as her lips claimed that sweet mouth for what had to have been the fourth time that night, that she was destined to be with her, to live with her and die with her.

And Haruka wasn't scared.


End file.
